He Hates Me, Probably
by Tobirion
Summary: Cloud thought he was a pretty likeable guy.  Sure, he had his enemies—quite a few, in fact—but generally, people got along with him. That's why it was such a shock to find that for reasons unknown, Angeal Hewley hated Cloud Strife's guts. Angeal/Cloud.


**:B On the poll on my homepage, "Honorable Angeal" is being voted in as the least cute. Ha ha ha! The ones least voted for are the ones I must write-because I have to change all your opinions, eh? ;) Honorable Angeal is going to become the cutest thing _ever_. He already is. /heart. Here's some slightly sappy, poopoo Angeal/Cloud because I had to write someeethinggg. ALSO there's a reference to Invisible Molestation in here, let's see if you guys can spot it hurhurhurhur (it's really easy.)  
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**I love you all. And I don't own FFVII:CC.** **ALSO ALSO: I JUST NEEDED TO SAY IT. ANGEAL HEWLEY. I LOOOOOOOVE YOU. /ahem**

**Edit: OH RIGHT. I forgot to say this. This fic was inspired by all the cutscenes/pictures of Angeal-he always looks so angry. His eyebrows are always all :l and... somehow, it's adorable.  
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><p>Cloud thought he was a pretty likeable guy. Sure, he had his enemies—quite a few, in fact—but generally, people seemed to enjoy his presence. Cloud had a bunch of friends, his teachers never said anything bad about him, and nice old ladies in grocery stores always told him he had marvelous manners.<p>

Zack, his best friend, had sung Angeal's praises for weeks before Cloud met the man himself. Apparently, Commander Hewley was nice, was kind, always put others first, and was a huge softy, despite his intimidating strength.

Cloud had thought—hoped, even—that they'd get along swimmingly. If Zack liked the guy so much (everyone did, really) he had to be pretty awesome.

That's why he was so shocked to find that he was wrong, wrong, wrong. For reasons unknown, Angeal Hewley hated Cloud Strife's guts. It had started the first time Zack invited him over. Cloud had actually never slept over anyone's house before so he was really excited, nearly shaking in his boots as he knocked on the man's apartment door, envisioning them eating candy and sharing secrets late into the night or something.

The door had flown open after a few seconds, and his bag had been yanked out of his hands, and he was tugged into the room.

"Cloud's here!" Zack yelled, putting an arm around the blond's shoulders and jerking him into his side. Cloud smiled brightly and was surprised to hear a voice answer Zack's from the kitchen.

"Ahh—the Cloud I've heard so much about?"

"The one and the same." Zack looked down at Cloud. "Mind if I move your stuff to my room?"

"Uh, sure." Zack trotted off to deposit his pillow and clothes and stuff, and Cloud nervously turned to the tall man who strolled out of the kitchen, beer in hand. Yep, this was Angeal Hewley, Zack's mentor.

"Nice to meet you," his Commander said, holding out a hand. Cloud shook it, responding with a similar greeting and smiled up at the man. Angeal looked at him for a long moment, then frowned.

"So!" Zack said, coming back to where they were. Cloud, slightly confused, focused his attention on his friend.

Zack and Cloud ate pizza for dinner and ate it on the floor by the television in their pajamas. They prank-called Genesis, talked bad about people they both couldn't stand, and had a pillow fight (or, to be totally accurate, they had a 'Cloud ran away, eventually tripped and then begged for mercy as he was repeatedly hit with a pillow' fight). Throughout this, Angeal lingered. He was nice, talkative... but... weird. He kept making faces at Cloud, and as the night went on, he seemed to get angrier and angrier. Eventually he excused himself, saying something about paperwork. Cloud said goodnight—Angeal turned around in the doorway, gave him an unreadable look, uttered a stiff, "Goodnight, Cloud, it was a pleasure" and was out the door.

Cloud was quiet, confused and a bit hurt, but Zack started giggling at something and ruffled his hair. "Knock it off," Cloud mumbled, batting Zack's hands away.

"Can't help it. You're too much."

"Huh?"

"Nothin'."

He didn't know why the man seemed to hate him. Cloud had never been rude, or at least he didn't think so. He hadn't said anything offensive or been insubordinate... so why?

After seeing the guy a few times, and after seeing him react the same way—clenched jaw, furrowed eyebrows, strange, heated looks—Cloud was convinced. What the fuck? He barely _knew_ the guy.

It kind of stung, but he got over it. Whatever.

...Mostly.

Because the truth was, Cloud idolized Angeal. Probably a bit too much. Angeal, for all his Cloud-hate, was... a drippingly sexy, hot piece of—er, um, he was... visually appealing to Cloud. H-He was sixteen! How was he supposed to ignore that?

Cloud, whenever Angeal was spotted or came up in conversation, became instantly annoyed, saddened, and a little bit flustered. Okay, very.

But it didn't matter. For some reason, Angeal didn't like him. It was okay.

And now, a few weeks after that first meeting, Cloud knew that his suspicions were true. Because why else would Angeal look so damned _angry_ whenever he saw Cloud? He could be laughing at something Zack said, see Cloud and then immediately sober. His eyebrows would draw together, and his surprisingly full, appealing lips would purse in annoyance. He never said anything rude outright to Cloud, but by the way he acted around him, Cloud knew.

Yes, he knew.

Right now was a good example. Cloud had been trailing alongside Zack, thinking about the whole unfortunate situation with Angeal. They were on their way to his office, actually; Zack had some things to drop off, and they were going out afterwards.

"I think I'll wait outside," Cloud said nervously, stopping when they reached the right door. Zack acted like he hadn't heard and tugged him forward. Zack opened the door and let out a joyful, "Angeeeaal!"

"Hey." He sure recognized that voice.

Zack disappeared inside, and after a moment of awkward hesitation Cloud entered too, daintily shutting the door behind him, not wanting to give the man anything else to dislike him for. He fluttered in place, trying not to look at anything in particular, then glanced up.

Angeal's eyes met his, and the man looked surprised—and then for a split second something like _rage_ flashed across the man's features. Zack didn't seem to notice and leant over the desk, flipping open a folder and explaining the contents.

Cloud withered in place, visibly drooping. _Gaia..._

He sat on one of the chairs on the side of the room, shivering a little. He and Zack were going out to lunch after visiting Angeal and weren't in uniform. Cloud ran his palms over his knees. He was freezing in here, wearing shorts and a t-shirt. He'd never know why it was so col d in Shin-Ra.

Zack and Angeal's military-themed chatter washed over him. He was quiet and took to studying the bookcase in the corner. There were a few issues of LOVELESS in there—Cloud wondered if Angeal read it, or if they were there because of Commander Rhapsodos. He squinted and peered at some of the titles.

"Cloud!"

"Huh?" Cloud jumped and faced forward; the other two were staring at him. Angeal's face was twisted in displeasure. Ugh.

"Finally you hear me," Zack said with a silly smile on his face. "C'mon, chocobo."

"_Zack_," Cloud protested, blushing and hurrying for the door, eager to escape.

His SOLDIER friend laughed and followed him out. "Bye, 'Geal."

"...Goodbye."

Cloud, once safely out of earshot, or eyeshot, or any other kind of shot, thought to confess his worries. He leant over the table they were sitting at, elbow almost in their appetizer and whispered, "...I need to tell you something."

"What's up?" Zack crossed one leg over the other under the table. He looked really good in civvies—relaxed and more approachable than he usually seemed, which said a lot. Cloud's mouth twisted as he considered.

"...Never mind."

What if he upset Zack with his suspicions? Angeal was Zack's most-important person—if Cloud brought Zack's attention to the rift between Angeal and Cloud, he'd feel awkward and mad. He'd cut Cloud out of his life. He'd be disappointed in Cloud for putting him in a situation like that. He couldn't risk it. He'd stay silent, for now.

"...You sure?" Zack asked, giving him a critical look over his raspberry lemonade.

"Yeah," Cloud answered, now uncomfortable. "Wh-what are you doing this weekend?"

Cloud continued to be hush-hush about the whole thing. Time went on. Cloud and Zack grew closer as friends; it wasn't uncommon, these days, for the two of them to spend the whole day together. Zack would drop by the barracks; Cloud would sometimes stop by Zack's place. Unfortunately, by doing that Cloud sometimes stumbled across Commander Hewley. It wasn't _so _bad though—Cloud steered clear of Angeal whenever possible, and it seemed that the tough SOLDIER was doing the same. Zack, bless his heart, didn't seem to notice.

Their budding friendship was one reason why Cloud kept quiet. Zack was... quickly becoming a huge part of his life. Cloud hadn't really had friends before so he didn't know, but he and Zack seemed exceptionally close. Zack took him camping once, and because Cloud's sleeping bag was ripped to shreds by monsters on the trek out they shared the same one; no big deal. Little things Zack did to include Cloud meant the world to the small blond, even if Zack didn't know it. It was a great feeling to finally have someone in his corner, Cloud thought.

And that's precisely why he couldn't tell Zack about Angeal. He wasn't about to mess up their friendship, not for anything. Certainly not for a sexy SOLDIER who hated him.

Cloud's interaction with Angeal was minimal. Like he had said, Angeal seemed to be avoiding him too. Sure, Cloud would occasionally see him (and once he had the misfortune of being stuck in the elevator with the guy for a whole twenty-six floors—Gaia, that had been awful; Angeal had glared at the buttons the entire time while Cloud had wrung his hands in agony) but not often.

The new system was going pretty well. But, Cloud got too used to it.

"Please?"

"...Uh, no thanks."

"C'monnn," Zack whined, kicking his feet a little. "Please, man? I'm drowning in forms up to my eyeballs—I don't have time."

Cloud protested just a little more, and then gave in. He muttered, staring at the ground, "Okay. Fine." He held out his hands, Zack plopped a few thick folders on top of them, and Cloud skittered out of the room, dodging Zack's encouraging slap on the back.

Ugh! Deliver things to Commander Hewley!

"What am I, a secretary?" He grumbled. He didn't want to do this. He didn't want to see that handsome man's face twist in disgust, didn't want to see deep blue eyes harden. It would have been okay, maybe, perhaps, if Angeal disliked Cloud for an actual fucking _reason_. Instead, Cloud had no—absolutely _no—_idea whatsoever as to why the man felt the way he did.

He tried not to think about it, generally. Broke his damn heart. But... as Cloud slowly walked up the many sets of stairs (because there was no way he was taking the elevator, that was way too quick) toward Angeal's office, he couldn't help but replay their every meeting in his mind and mull over the meaning of every sigh of displeasure, every involuntary twitch of the man's fingers.

Unfortunately, Cloud arrived far to soon. He frowned at the door, looking left and right down the hallway. ...What was he _doing_?

_Just do it, _he hissed to himself. _Go in, drop it off, leave. There's time to feel sorry for yourself later!_

Cloud took a bunch of sharp breaths and stood on his tiptoes, full of energy and sudden adrenaline. He knocked, head held high.

"If your name isn't Zack Fair and you don't have the reports I wanted two hours ago, go away."

...Huh? Angeal's tone was light and playful, like he fully expected it to be Zack instead of Cloud or anyone else knocking on the door. Cloud probably messaged the guy and said he'd drop it off soon... and then made Cloud do his dirty work. Jerk!

Cloud bit his lip, unsure what to do. "...Uh," he called, pressing his face close to the wood, "This isn't Za—Lieutenant Fair, Sir. It's Cloud Strife... the Lieutenant asked me to drop everything off for you..."

A long silence. Cloud thought he heard a snicker, but that didn't make any sense. Then, he heard a deep, reluctant, "Enter."

Cloud gulped and did so, pressing the folders to his chest. He cracked it open halfway, and then realized—Angeal wasn't alone. Sephiroth—General Sephiroth—and Commander Rhapsodos curiously eyed him. All three men were eating lunch. Shhhittt.

"Sirs!" Cloud yelped smartly, snapping his heels together and saluting.

"At ease," Genesis answered, waving his fork at him. He was smiling.

Cloud was quiet, staring at the three of them, then realized he was being stupid and stumbled forward with a blush. "H-Here, Sir—Zack was too busy to deliver it himself—oh—" A paper fluttered to the ground, and Cloud bent to retrieve it; it took a few tries for his trembling fingers to grasp it, but finally they did, and Cloud straightened up. He placed everything on the desk, carefully avoiding the open cartons of Wutaian food.

Angeal's eyes met his. They were smoldering, pinning Cloud in place. He had that "angry face" (as Cloud had dubbed it) on, but... it was so much worse now, the worst he'd ever seen.

Frankly, it was terrifying.

Angeal was one of SOLDIER's poster boys. He was all strength, muscle, manly formidableness—if that was even a word—and now, bearing the brunt of all of that rage from a man who, naturally, it seemed, commanded respect and attention and who wielded a sword bigger and heavier than most men, and who killed many in war... it was almost too much. Almost was an understatement.

Cloud broke his gaze, looking at something, anything else—it turned out to be General Sephiroth, who was watching him, slowly chewing some rice.

"P-P-P-Permission tobeexcusedSir?" Cloud asked, instantly wincing. He had never stuttered so badly in his whole life. Angeal grunted something and Cloud skittered away, nearly tripping over Genesis's outstretched legs. The man apologized and flashed him an amused smile.

"I-It's okay," Cloud said, waving his hands, then escaped out the door. He closed it and only when he was two floors away did he let himself breathe and think.

He had hoped that, because they had had such little contact recently, that the man would have cooled down at least a little. That obviously wasn't the case.

...This was bad. Not only for his health and self-esteem, but for his career.

Angeal was good friends with SOLDIER's elite. He knew this. What if.. Angeal talked? What if the General started hating him, too? He'd get nowhere. He'd get kicked out of Shin-Ra. He'd have to return to Nibelheim. Oh Gaia.

Cloud made a decision that day, sitting in a heap at the end of some random hallway. For his sake, for Zack's sake, for his future career as a SOLDIER's sake, he was going to confront Angeal Hewley. He was going to find out why the guy hated him—and, if not that, he was going to put aside their differences. It was the right thing to do.

Despite Cloud's new resolve, he didn't think he'd be telling Angeal anything anytime soon. It wasn't because of a lack of effort on his part—nothing of the sort. It was because Angeal had disappeared.

Okay, not really. He was still around. But, Cloud could never quite get to him. It was unmistakably true now; Angeal was _avoiding _him. Cloud couldn't speak with Angeal not because he was too shy, but because it was physically impossible.

Seriously, what had he ever done to the guy!

It took a while for Cloud to catch on. At first he thought that he was busy, or had gone on a mission. But then Zack had told him that he had hung out with Angeal—on a day Cloud had lurked on the man's floor, trying to glimpse him, but had gotten nothing. Therefore, the guy was around... just hard to find. Hmm.

The proof came after lunch one day. Cloud was full (they had red jello, his favorite, and he had snuck back in line three times) and happy and totally not thinking about depressing things (read: Angeal Hewley) at all. But, through the mad rush of SOLDIERs and Cadets rushing to wherever they were going, he got a very clear glimpse of a familiar black-haired man walking his way, and it wasn't Zack.

Angeal! Cloud surged forward, trying to catch up to him. The man, perhaps feeling Cloud's gaze, turned, and their eyes met. Even from so far away Cloud could see the way the man's eyes widened—almost comically. Angeal turned on his heel and stiffly walked away in the opposite direction.

He _was_ avoiding him! Cloud ran, tripping over people in his clunky boots but not caring. He turned a corner after seeing the man slip down an adjacent hallway, but... the guy was gone. It was like he had vanished.

Fuck!

With the guy actively avoiding Cloud, it was difficult to find him and set things straight. Obviously. And... after a while it wasn't so bad. He could pretend that everything was okay, and he didn't know Commander Hewley, and the guy didn't hate him.

But... every time he talked to Zack, it was rough. Cloud could hang with Zack and have fun, but the whole time he'd feel awful. It felt wrong, keeping a secret from Zack. The poor guy didn't know... he didn't know Angeal, his favorite guy, favorite mentor, hated Cloud, his favorite friend. That was so awkward! That was so wrong!

The urge to do something about it, to find Angeal and plead with him to cool it—for Zack's sake, if nothing else—was still very strong. And it hurt, really, talking to him sometimes. Like now, Cloud decided dejectedly as he kicked his feet under the table of the ice cream parlor he had traveled to. He was here alone; it had been really hot earlier, and a caramel sundae had sounded lovely; now it was dark outside, and thundering.

**Where are you?**Read Zack's text to him. Cloud fiddled with his PHS for a second before answering.

_Eating ice cream at this place below the plate. What's up?_

**Wanna sleep over tonight?**

Cloud sat up straight in his seat, licking his spoon. Maybe tonight he'd finally say something to Zack about it. Little things, to figure out if he knew anything or suspected something. Hmm.

_I'd love to. I'm almost done, I'll leave soon._

**Kay! See ya soon Spiky :)**

Cloud scarfed down the rest of his ice cream and stood to throw his trash out, wincing at the soft pitter-patter of summer rain. Shin-Ra didn't give you summer vacation, like in school at home, so here he was in the smothering heat, suffering through crazy thunderstorms. He just hoped it wouldn't get any worse. He left with a wave to the friendly girl who had been working behind the counter and hurried towards home, wishing he had bought a coat, even though the hot air was making him melt. A t-shirt and shorts weren't any good against the rain.

The train that brought him up to the plate was still working; Cloud flashed his Shin-Ra ID to a man who looked like he was about to force him out of the area, and, getting some pleasure out of the whole incident, sat in a seat, nervously bouncing his leg. His PHS buzzed.

**Where aaaaaaare youuuuuu? :'(**

Cloud rolled his eyes. _On the train! _

Zack didn't answer, and Cloud jogged out of the train station once he was up. It was drizzling...and, oh shoot—there was the rain.

"Noooo," Cloud wailed, speeding up to a run and covering his head with his arms, not that it did much. Lightning lit up the sky and the rain fell harder—Cloud spotted some other Cadet running towards the building and they fell in place, laughing and sliding in puddles. They made it inside, but were totally soaked. The kid was in one of his classes; Cloud smiled, waved, and headed towards the stairs. He was a lot closer to Zack's apartment than the barracks, so he'd stop for a towel to dry himself off with, then go get his pajamas and toothbrush and stuff from his room.

Cloud had a copy of Zack's keycard in his wallet and let himself in. "Zack!" he called, walking in. "I'm so wet! It's raining so hard outside." He walked through the living room, gripping his now-clingy shirt and pulling it over his head, giggling. "Me n' this other nearly fell in a puddle—"

He stopped talking, stopping mid-step. Angeal Hewley sat on the couch in sweatpants next to Zack. He looked surprised to see him, every bit as frozen as Cloud was.

Zack, you were so sneaky.

"Uhh," Cloud began, holding his dripping shirt in front of his chest, "I need a—uh, need a towel..." he scampered off to the bathroom, frantically dried his hair and turned to leave but bumped into Zack, who picked him up and spun him around.

"Zack! Let go!"

The SOLDIER laughed, setting him on the ground and ruffling his damp spikes. "You don't mind if Angeal's here for a little while, do ya?"

"Nah, it's okay," he said uncomfortably, following Zack back to the living room. Zack pulled Cloud to his chest and harshly ran the towel over his head, getting some cruel amusement out of the Cadet's sputters. Cloud eventually pushed away, aware his shorts were dripping water onto Zack's carpet and fled the apartment with the towel, shooting a frightened glance at Angeal.

The man looked furious.

As Cloud hurried to the barracks, he thought. An idea had struck him as he rode past the 15th floor in the elevator... perhaps—perhaps he knew why Angeal disliked him.

Maybe it was because he was friends with Zack? What if Angeal was...jealous? Or just didn't approve?

What if Angeal _liked _Zack, and—oh—oh—_oh, _that had to be it. Angeal was crushing on Zack and hated Cloud because Cloud was his friend. Did Angeal think _Cloud_ liked Zack? No, probably not. He did seem to be angriest whenever the two of them were being friendly... like when Zack was drying his hair for him. Angeal looked pissed. That one day he had walked in on Cloud being tickled to death in the energetic First's office chair—Angeal had slammed the door shut and walked off.

It all made So. Much. Sense.

Ding ding ding! One point for Strife!

How to rectify the situation, then...? Cloud stuffed clothes into an overnight bag and hastily changed into soft, warm clothing. There was no other way around it. Tonight he'd have to talk to Angeal while he had the chance and explain, for once and for all, that: one, he wasn't interested in Zack and two, Angeal could stop hating him now, thank you very much.

This was great. Sort of. Cloud was by no means a jealous guy, but...well. He was happy for Zack. He and Angeal would make a great couple. Good for them. Eh.

He frowned on his walk back to Zack's place, but it was okay. Things were going to get better.

This time Angeal was sitting on the very edge of the couch, looking nervous and visibly upset. Did the guy hate him that much? Seriously?

"Spike," Zack said, smiling and tossing him a can of soda. "You don't look like you just jumped into a pool anymore."

Cloud laughed quietly, plopping his bag in the bedroom and coming back in. Zack made him sit on the couch—a good four feet away from Angeal, gulp—and rooted around in the entertainment center. "We should watch a scary movie," he narrated to the two men, "I think it's around here somewhere... oh!" He stood up and turned around. "Kunsel has it," he said with a grin. "Stay here. I'll be right back."

Before either of them could protest, Zack was out the door.

Silence.

Cloud resisted the urge to fidget, suddenly feeling very small and insignificant. His Commander was tense, quiet; the muscles in his forearms were bulging. Planet, he didn't want to do this.

The humming of the refrigerator was the loudest thing. Cloud sat there, feeling like he was drowning in awkwardness and tension. His shoulders slumped and he drew his knees to his chest, loosely looping his arms around his shins, wiggling his socked toes into the couch cushion.

"Sir."

Angeal didn't even turn to look at him. "...Yeah?"

It was hard to get the words out. Cloud pressed his cheek into his knee and said glumly, "I know you hate me."

The older man's head snapped around and the man stared at him. Yup, he wasn't stupid—did the guy really think he wouldn't notice?

"Um," he said, voice soft and sad, "I just wanted to say that I'm sorry, if I ever did anything to make you dislike me this much. I—I know you can't stand me but... I," he had to pause, voice wavering, "I don't hate you back."

Angeal had completely turned in his seat. He said nothing, but was frowning so deeply it almost looked painful. Cloud couldn't look him in the eye. He began to speak again but was interrupted.

"I don't hate you," Angeal said, sounding bewildered. "What gave you that idea?"

Cloud stared at him, inching the littlest bit away. Was this a joke? "You just, always look so angry whenever you see me. And you've been avoiding me, a-and—"

A soft touch to his cheek made him stop his rambling. Angeal gently forced Cloud to look at him. "Cloud." He didn't seem so angry this time—rather, his handsome features seemed full of sadness, regret maybe. The man broke eye contact first, dropping his hand. "I'm not angry with you." He sighed. "...I apologize if it seemed that way. I've been...frustrated with myself, and, hm."

That seemed to be all he was willing to say, and he folded his arms, looking at his nervously-jiggling foot. Cloud, confused, leaned a bit closer. "Frustrated with yourself?"

Angeal glanced at the sad, teary-eyed boy curiously watching him from just a few feet away and sighed again, louder this time. He reached out and, much to Cloud's surprise, tugged on the blond's wrist. Cloud moved with him and was comfortably arranged on the couch in between the man's legs, his own stretched out along the cushions lengthwise.

Oh.

The Commander seemed sheepish. "Because of you," he breathed. Cloud was slowly pinkening as the situation made more and more sense and said nothing. "You're so young and innocent—and my honor, I can't—"

"I'm back!" Zack cried, kicking open his front door with his foot. He tossed the keycard somewhere and leisurely strolled into the living room, movie in hand. He held it up, looking unsurprised to see the two skittish men in the position they were. "_The Invisibles_. Sounds lame; it's great."

Cloud struggled a little in embarrassment, but Angeal didn't let Cloud crawl away. He said nothing but was frowning at him again.

Wh—What the hell?

"Are you two all better now?" Zack asked as he popped in the disc. They didn't answer so he pouted at them, crossing his arms. "No? Look. Cloud, Angeal's had the hots for you ever since you first met. But he's got his honorable blah blah blah so his honor said _No, leave Cloud alone_ and he said _I want Cloud _and he's been all angry at himself and that's why-" Zack used his fingers to mime angry eyebrows, "He always looks so scary around you! When you do cute things he gets even angrier. Make sense?"

"...Thanks," Angeal muttered as Zack hustled into the kitchen to make popcorn.

"You never hated me?" Cloud asked, almost unable to believe it.

Angeal didn't answer verbally; he pressed a soft kiss to Cloud's cheek and rested his forehead against the top of the blond's head. The action was almost shy, and Cloud instantly got rid of any last misgivings. "Just this once, I'm going to have to ignore my honor, it seems."

Cloud looked so overwhelmed Angeal's hand found his and he had to ask, "Are you okay? With this?"

What was he _doing_? "A-Absolutely!" Cloud cried, coming to his senses. He scrambled up and squeezed the man's neck, feeling Angeal's big hands come to rest on his hips. His thoughts were racing, about how impossible this was and how happy he was and how smart Zack was and a thousand other things, but that was okay—he felt Angeal's smile against his shoulder and he knew that _Angeal didn't hate him—in fact, he felt the opposite_ and it was alright.

"Yay!" Zack cheered, sitting beside them with an overflowing bowl of popcorn. That nicely summed it up. Angeal and Cloud got comfortable, and, with trembling fingers, Cloud grasped the oldest man's hand. Angeal smiled at him, and it was the smile that so many people talked about, the smile of honorable Angeal Hewley, the guy who you could go to if you were in trouble or needed to talk. It was a nice feeling, and kind of a surreal one. Okay then.

"You know," Zack said halfway through the movie, over the soft sounds of kissing and whispers coming from right beside him, "Director Lazard? I'm pretty sure he hates me..."

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><p><strong>Thank you very much for reading! And have a great day ;) ~Love, Tobi<strong>


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